US President Barack Obama is set to throw his support behind Japan in its territorial dispute over a group of islands with China, citing a treaty between the two countries, which would lead Washington to intervene military if Beijing attacked.

The tiny islands in the East China Sea have been a source of
tension between the two Asian nations. But Obama says they are
covered by a bilateral security treaty that would oblige the US
to come to Japan’s defense if China decided to take the islands
by force.

“The policy of the United States is clear - the Senkaku
islands are administered by Japan and therefore fall within the
scope of ... the U.S.-Japan Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and
Security,” Obama said, using the Japanese name for the
islands that are known as the Diaoyu in China.

However, Obama’s comments did not seem to worry China, with Beijing’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin
Gang saying: “The so-called US-Japan alliance is a bilateral
arrangement from the Cold War and ought not to harm China's
territorial sovereignty and reasonable rights.”

Last week, Tokyo announced plans that they are going to build a
radar station near the disputed islands. “This is the first
deployment since the US returned Okinawa in 1972, and calls for
us to be more on guard are growing,” Japanese Defense
Minister Itsunori Onodera told media during a symbolic
groundbreaking ceremony on Yonaguni Island on April 19. “I
want to build an operation able to properly defend islands that
are part of Japan's territory.”

The US has military bases in Japan, while the two countries
conducted a series of military drills last summer designed to help prepare Tokyo in
the event of China deciding to invade the disputed islands.
Code-named Dawn Blitz, they were conducted on San Clemente
Island, 75 miles northwest of San Diego in California, the
Christian Science Monitor reported.They began with an assault led
by 80 US Marines and three MV-22 Osprey aircraft, and were
followed by a Japanese counterattack using 1,000 troops and two
warships.

Obama arrived in Tokyo on Wednesday for talks with Japanese Prime
Minister Shinzo Abe, which will start an eight day tour of the
region that also takes in stops in South Korea, Malaysia and the
Philippines.

He faces a delicate balancing act to try and Beijing, while not
forgetting about America’s other alliances within the region.
“Our engagement with China does not and will not come at the
expense of Japan or any other ally,” Obama added.

However, Obama’s decision to side with Japan, which has been a
fierce rival of China’s since the Second World War, has been
ridiculed by Beijing, who say that Washington is looking to
“cage” the emerging superpower, Xinhua news agency
reported.

“The United States should reappraise its anachronistic
hegemonic alliance system and stop pampering its chums like Japan
and the Philippines that have been igniting regional tensions
with provocative moves,” Xinhua added.

Obama’s next stop will be South Korea, where talks concerning
North Korea’s nuclear ambitions are likely to dominate
proceedings. Obama mentioned that he is keen to work together
with China, the secretive regions only ally and that Beijing
could play a constructive role in keeping Pyongyang in check.

North Korea has threatened to resume conducting nuclear tests,
with the last one happening in 2013.

“We continue to urge North Korea to refrain from actions that
threaten regional peace and security and to comply with its
international obligations and commitments,” US State
Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki told a regular briefing.